When was the tripod first produced? Personally, it should be early summer. I don't know if there is any evidence in archaeology. It should be more reasonable. The basis is as follows: 1. Records of Dayu casting Jiuding. This is generally recognized in pre-Qin ancient books, and there is no doubt about it. The most concentrated one is Zuo Zhuan, in which Chu Zhuangwang went north to the Central Plains and asked the Zhou Dynasty "the weight of the tripod". Wang solved this problem with a famous saying of supercilious. Its content involves its origin, significance, form, mode, communication history and its relationship with political power. It can be seen that the existence and history of Jiuding was basically recognized at that time. The documents of the Zhou Dynasty should be highly reliable. Followed by the Ding unearthed in the middle and late Shang Dynasty (such as Simuwu Dafang Ding). ) has reached a highly developed level in scale, technology and technology. Without thousands of years of development and progress, it is almost unimaginable to reach such a level.
Let's imagine the eating style of Xia and Shang nobles: all the members of a big family (or the host and guests of a banquet) sit around a big tripod, put all the food and spices in the tripod and cook them first. When everyone is talking, they will take out the cooked dishes and put them in their own small tableware, or set dishes for each other. The bigger the tripod, the more people get together for dinner, which indicates the nobler the status and strength of this family. Eating more and more, especially in the era of underdeveloped society. Therefore, the tripod is endowed with a deeper meaning and becomes a symbol of status and strength. At the same time, it is indeed the best way to discuss problems, exchange feelings and strengthen cohesion. Even today, people in China are used to eating to reconcile their feelings and discuss problems. I think it has a lot to do with this ancient eating habit of our ancestors.
Another question is, what cookers do ordinary people, poor people and even slaves use to cook? It shouldn't work with a tripod. The biggest possibility is pottery. I wonder if pottery will break easily if it is often cooked. Probably not, because naughty itself is burned by high temperature.
Ding reached its heyday in Shang Dynasty, but there was an inevitable trend: rich and varied diet. First of all, not everything is suitable for cooking in a large pot; Secondly, such cauldron dishes, no matter how delicious they taste, are always boring because of their single taste. As a result, cooking technology has stepped onto the historical stage.
Zhou: The emergence of cooking technology and Ding's specialization.
China's cooking technology has a long history, but it is difficult to prove when it came into being. Personally, I think it should be in the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. The reasons are as follows: First, during the Shang Zhouwang period, nobles were extravagant and pursued "quality of life" very much, while Shang Zhouwang had an "ocean of meat and wine", so the diversification of tastes was likely to appear; Secondly, archaeology proves that the Ding unearthed in Zhou Dynasty is inferior to Shang Dynasty in scale and technology. Scholars often explain it as the backwardness and strict frugality policy of the Zhou Dynasty, which is really hard to convince, because the Zhou Dynasty is superior in territory and strength. Even if thrift was practiced at first, there were many luxury groups later. The most likely reason is that the aristocratic diet changed at that time, and "cooking" was gradually replacing "cauldron dishes", so Ding's status was reduced. Third, according to the Analects of Confucius, the land of hard work, Confucius "never tires of eating essence" and wants to eat fish with delicate skills. Without ginger, he won't eat it. It can be seen that in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the cooking technology was quite mature, and even the food culture had been produced, and it was unimaginable without considerable development. Since then, the people of China have breathed great happiness. As you can imagine, once cooking technology came into being, it became popular among the nobles.
However, Ding has not been forgotten by people. On the one hand, this tradition has a long history and is deeply rooted. On the other hand, it is difficult for people to give up delicious soup while enjoying colorful dishes. In the Zhou Dynasty, Ding still assumed some cooking and cooking functions, and its professional function of "praising soup" was further developed. Since then, soup has become another important food for people. According to Zuo Zhuan, in the first 605 years, the State of Chu gave Zheng some special products: "Cloud". Zheng was very happy and immediately called the minister Zi Gong (the son of Song) to enjoy it with his son's family. On the way, Zigong said to his son's family: Today, we will definitely eat delicious food, because my index finger has been moving since morning. It used to be delicious every time I cooked it, and it worked every time! When I arrived at the palace, I saw the chef killing the giant salamander. The two men smiled at each other. When Chen Uen laughed at you, Zi Gong said proudly. I didn't expect Gong Ling to be very angry. When eating, let Zigong watch and not enjoy it! Zi Gong felt ashamed and resentful. He dipped his finger in the tripod and took a sip of soup, which he hated. Since then, the relationship between monarch and minister has broken down. Gong Ling tried to kill Zi Gong, but the quilt moved first and killed Gong Ling. There is another story. Xiang Yu seized Liu Bang's father and threatened to cook him unless he surrendered. Liu bang actually asked for a piece of soup for himself. It can be seen that in the Qin and Han dynasties, soup was already a favorite and often enjoyed food.
Third, after the Han Dynasty: Tibetan culture.
After the Han Dynasty, Ding, as a cooker, gradually withdrew from the historical stage, but her shadow has long been deeply branded into the depths of China culture, lingering until now:
1, the art of cultural relics is solemn and gorgeous. Until today, artists still take her as the theme and create works of art with strong cultural color. The bronze dings unearthed in Shang and Zhou Dynasties have become priceless cultural relics.
2. language. In Chinese. Ding is the embodiment of solemnity, massiness, authority and nobility. For example, keeping promise, being famous, helping each other with all one's strength, carrying the tripod, and so on.
3. Food culture. For 3,000 years, soup has almost become a treasure that China people can't live without, and it has become a culture. There is a cloud in the Tang poetry: On the third day, cook instead of me and wash your hands to make bride soup. I don't know the taste of mother-in-law. Let's make the taste of good sister-in-law first. It is said that the bride will cook soup for her mother-in-law after three days of marriage. Now, it should be the Hakka people in Guangdong who praise Tang most often.